Photographer Brett Weston would have turned 100 this December 16, and a Carmel gallery will celebrate his centennial with the release of a new book that turns the lens on his life and career.

Just 100 copies of “Brett Weston at One Hundred,” a collection of essays by Weston’s friends and contemporaries, will be available with the purchase of a Weston print from Photography West Gallery in downtown Carmel. The leather-bound book, published by Photography West Graphics and edited by Merrily Ally, also features rare shots of the photographer with friends and family.

Van Deren Coke, the late SFMOMA director of photography, called Weston “the child genius of American photography.” He came from a notable family – his father, Edward Weston, was also a famed cameraman – and Brett Weston is widely considered one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century. He lived in and near Carmel for many years, and Photography West Gallery Owner Carol Williams worked with him for 13 of those years. She says he had a very sophisticated eye and a visually thrilling style.

“Brett Weston invested himself 100 percent in a visual language that is quite exhilarating,” she explains. “He believed people should be able to look at his photographs without the use of any words at all, and come away with some immediate experience of those images…He always told me that if a photograph requires words, it has failed.”

A release party for “Brett Weston at One Hundred” takes place at Photography West Gallery on Friday, Dec. 16, from 4 to 6 p.m. To learn more, visit www.photographywest.com or call 831-625-1587.

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